First of we have Angel King with their release World of Pain. Decent heavy rock that might be quite derivative but has some charm. Not exactly an album that grabs you right away but the gravel-voiced lead singer lends a certain flair to the whole thing. “Fahrenheit 541” and the title track are good examples of what to expect.

Much less sophisticated and clever is The Dogs Divine. Not that you are gonna give a rats arse. This is heavy sleaze rock that doesn’t give a damn if you are offended. Size of the Fight is the perfect soundtrack for a crappy mood. Part The Almighty and a touch of Salty Dog this is just what the doctor ordered. I like the big F.U. to the critics as well, nice touch.

Eternal Flight soar with their effort D.r.e.a.m.s. although at times you wonder if they are going to do an Icarus on you. This power metal is from France and thus tinged with that uniquely French taint of art metal. There are times when this music is all over the place. This is certainly not your fist-in-the-air brand of power metal so loved in Scandinavia. An acquired taste for sure.

Gun Barrel is an interesting shot across the bow to the rest of the power metal hoard. They tend to mix a touch of sleaze with their power metal vibe and garnish it with a healthy dose of AC/DC. Brace for Impact is a pretty damn good album that is quite a good driving release. It is just the right mixture of everything that you like about heavy rock. An album to seek out for sure.

Nightmare play heavy metal in the style of Judas Priest and their ilk. This is foot-on-the-monitor stuff that was huge in the ’80s. Vicious Little Smile is like a blast from the past. That is no criticism of this French band, it is just not exactly anything new or different. However competent metal with all the right bits in it is not a bad thing.

Jimmy Bain and Scott Warren have teamed up with someone called Sledge and another called Leather to form this band called Sledge Leather. This is their debut album and it is very much in the style of Accept when fronted by Udo. Imagine Me Alive has got some damn fine playing on it and there is no doubting this bunch should be a force to reckon with live. The album lacks a touch of consistency in terms of quality of tracks, but decent on average.

If Savage sound to you like a New Wave of Heavy Metal band it is because they are from that era. Unlike some of the NWOBHM (New Wave of British Heavy Metal) bands that have re-formed, these guys deliver the goods in abundance on Sons of Malice. This is fresh yet familiar and all good. Savage were covered by Metallica on their first demo, so Lars (a big fan of NWOBHM) likes these guys. Whether ’80s version Marty or current Marty, I think this is a damn good album that is well worth your attention.

They are called Vengeance and they do a nice line is AC/DC-esque heavy rock. There is absolutely nothing not to like about Crystal Eye and I have enjoyed this album way too much as I drive around. It has a nice touch of Sunset Strip late-’80s rock about it as well. Hey, they even have a track called “Barbeque” which mentions Facebook. Try not to smirk listening to this album, I dare you.